In May 2011, True North Sports and Entertainment purchased the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers with the intention of relocating the team to Winnipeg for the 2011–12 NHL season.[1] With the return of the NHL to Winnipeg, a new home was needed for Moose. A deal was reached with former Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams to relocate the AHL team to St. John's for the 2011–12 season.[2][3][4] The AHL Board of Governors unanimously approved the franchise's relocation to St. John's on June 20, 2011.[5] Later that day, Williams and True North Senior Vice President Craig Heisinger held an event at Mile One Centre officially announcing the relocation of the Manitoba Moose to St. John's. At the same time, True North made the new St. John's team the top affiliate of its new NHL team.[6]

Coincidentally, the nearby community of Conception Bay South had been awarded the Kraft Hockeyvilleexhibition game for 2011, which would have featured the Atlanta Thrashers facing the Ottawa Senators. Because of the proximity of Conception Bay South to St. John's, the game between the Senators and the Jets was relocated to the Mile One Centre to accommodate larger crowds. This would be the first IceCaps-related game, as many of the Jets players were prospects who would be assigned to the IceCaps shortly after. The de facto home Jets defeated the Senators, 3–1.[7]

The IceCaps played their inaugural game on October 7, 2011 in Providence, Rhode Island against the Providence Bruins. Their first home game was on October 14, 2011 against the Hamilton Bulldogs. In their inaugural season, the IceCaps finished first in Atlantic division and reached the Eastern Conference Championship series, falling in four games to the eventual Calder Cup Champion Norfolk Admirals.

After missing the playoffs in the 2012–13 season, the IceCaps would finish 2013–14 in second place in the Atlantic Division (46-23-2-5, 99 pts) and would return to the playoffs by earning the fourth playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. The IceCaps defeated the Albany Devils 3 games to 1 in the conference quarterfinals and the Norfolk Admirals 4 games to 2 in the conference semifinals. On June 3, 2014, with a 5-0 victory over the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Championship series, the IceCaps claimed the Richard Canning Trophy as Eastern Conference champions and advanced to the Calder Cup Finals for the first time since relocating to Newfoundland from Manitoba. This marked the second time that St. John's would be represented in the AHL Championship series and the first since the St. John's Maple Leafs advanced to the 1992 Calder Cup Finals against the Adirondack Red Wings. The IceCaps would be defeated in five games by the Western Conference Champion Texas Stars.

In January 2014, True North Sports and Entertainment chairman Mark Chipman confirmed that the organization was exploring plans to relocate their AHL franchise to Thunder Bay, Ontario after the current lease with Danny Williams' group expired in 2015. Although the IceCaps have been a financial success, the geographical location of St. John's has presented significant travel difficulties for Jets' personnel. Williams stated he would try and find another team to bring to Newfoundland should the IceCaps leave.[8]

In September 2014, True North and Williams' group agreed to extend their affiliation agreement through the 2015–16 season.[9] However, news reports surfaced in March 2015 that Williams's group was close to reaching a deal that would see the Hamilton Bulldogs franchise relocate to Newfoundland for the 2015–16 season and True North's franchise move back to Winnipeg as the Manitoba Moose. These reports were later confirmed on March 12, 2015, when Williams' group announced that the IceCaps would be the primary affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens through the 2016–17 season and still be known as the St. John's IceCaps.[10][11]

Following the announcement of the team's relocation to St. John's, Williams stated that while he would prefer to hold a fan contest to name the team; however, with insufficient time before the start of the season, this task was brought to the team's advisory committee.[12] The "Moose" moniker, which the team had used until that time, was immediately ruled out. The high volume vehicular accidents in Newfoundland and Labrador involving the animal was cited as one of the reasons behind not retaining the old name.[13] Several media outlets soon started reporting that the team would be known as the St. John's IceCaps, this after St. John's IceCaps Inc. was registered with Newfoundland and Labrador's registry of deeds and companies.[14] The official announcement was made on July 29, 2011.[12]

The jerseys of the St. John's IceCaps, from 2011 to 2015 (while the franchise was owned by the Winnipeg Jets)

The St. John's IceCaps' colours were aviator blue, white, polar night blue, and silver; the same colours used by the Winnipeg Jets, their parent club. The IceCaps' home uniform was a white jersey with a polar night blue collar with aviator blue and silver trim, while their away uniform was a polar night blue jersey with aviator blue and silver trim, with the IceCaps logo placed on the front. These jerseys were styled from the Winnipeg Jets' jerseys. The IceCaps' jerseys also included the Winnipeg Jets' primary logo on the shoulder. The new IceCaps jersey with Montreal Canadiens' colours are set to be revealed during the summer of 2015.

Buddy the Puffin is the mascot of the IceCaps. Buddy was previously the mascot of the St. John's Maple Leafs. Buddy's number is 92, which represents 1992, the year that he was introduced as the mascot of the St. John's Maple Leafs.[15]

Newfoundland's isolated location in the easternmost part of Canada presented travel difficulties for teams flying to and from St. John's. Most flights to St. John's required a connection at Montréal or Toronto, which added to the length and cost of travel. In order to reduce costs for both the IceCaps and other AHL teams, teams traveling to St. John's usually played two games in a row.[citation needed]